The Ring of Solomon
It is 950 B.C.E., and King Solomon rules Jerusalem with a steely hand; a hand on which gleams a magic ring of immense and unforgiving power. Solomon has just begun work on his marvelous temple, charging Khaba, a formidable magician in his royal court, to oversee its construction. The workforce is an ill-behaved bunch of demons, a particularly unruly djinni named Bartimaeus among them. True to form, Bartimaeus promptly gets kicked off the temple project and assigned the even more miserable task of hunting bandits in the desert. There he crosses paths with Asmira, a highly skilled and loyal captain of the Queen of Sheba’s guard, on a suicidal mission to save her country from Solomon’s imminent attack. Of course, Bartimaeus has no intention of helping her. That is, until Asmira makes him an offer he cannot refuse . . .
A spellbinding prequel to Jonathan Stroud’s Bartimaeus Sequence, The Ring of Solomon brims with dazzling wit, unforgettable characters, and powerful themes of freedom and slavery, with or without magical bonds.
Costa Book Award Shortlist (2010); Los Angeles Times Book Prize Shortlist (2010); School Library Journal Battle of the Books Winner (2011); Prix Millepages Winner (2011)
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About the Bartimaeus Sequence Series
Books in series order
- 1.The Amulet of Samarkand(2003)
- 2.The Golem's Eye(2004)
- 3.Ptolemy's Gate(2005)
- +The Ring of Solomon(2010)
Reading age: 10+ years
This series should be read in order.
When the 5,000-year-old djinni Bartimaeus is summoned by Nathaniel, a young magician's apprentice, he expects to have to do nothing more taxing than a little levitation or a few simple illusions. But Nathaniel is a precocious talent and has something rather more dangerous in mind: revenge.
Against his will, Bartimaeus is packed off to steal the powerful Amulet of Samarkand from Simon Lovelace, a master magician of unrivalled ruthlessness and ambition. Before long, both djinni and apprentice are caught up in a terrifying flood of magical intrigue, murder and rebellion. Set in a modern-day London controlled by magicians, this hilarious, electrifying and thrilling series will enthral readers of all ages.